Our Lady of Guadalupe Dedicates Church

Family, unity and love were constant themes during a two-hour dedication service of Our Lady of Guadalupe Roman Catholic Church in Buckingham Saturday afternoon.

“We made it!” pronounced the Rev. Msgr. Joseph P. Gentili, pastor, during the concluding remarks of the service. The statement elicited a standing ovation and celebratory hoots from the crowd, which nearly filled the church to capacity.

Gentili offered accolades to all who helped bring about a new church following 11 years of its founding: architects, construction personnel, artisans, local and state civic officials, religious leaders and, of course, church members.

“I am so grateful to all those parishioners who were part of the living stones of this wonderful Catholic faith of unity,” he said. “Parishioners who stayed so loyal to our parish community – never becoming discouraged – over 11 years.”

Justin Cardinal Rigali, Archbishop of Philadelphia, was the principal celebrant and homilist during the dedication ceremony.

Rigali called the event, which coincided with Pentecost, a “day of immense joy."

“All of us come together as members of God’s family,” he said.

“This beautiful edifice also represents the great structure of God’s family – not disconnected and not pursuing our own aims but as members of the family of the parish … united in faith and love,” he said.

While the service included celebrating the Eucharist, it also featured certain rites specific to dedicating a new church. They included placing relics of saints John Neumann and Elizabeth Ann Seton in an opening beneath the altars in the church and chapel, anointing the altar and walls with consecrated oil and lighting and burning incense on the altar.

Following the dedication service, parishioners were invited to a buffet dinner and reception with Cardinal Rigali in tents on the property.

“We’ve been waiting for this for a long time,” said parishioner Lisa Simon of Buckingham, as she waited in line before the service began.

The parish, which formed in 2000 as an offshoot of in Doylestown, had been celebrating Mass at Central Bucks East High School and Holicong Middle School before this new facility was built.

Steve and Veronica Pollazzi of Buckingham also were thrilled to finally have a church to call home, too.

“Both of our kids were baptized at the high school,” said Steve Pollazzi, “so this is a big deal for us.”

His wife called it a “once in a lifetime event.”

Their children, now five and seven, were meeting them there after some sports commitments.

“Even though they’re small, this is something they may never see again.”

A procession of religious officials and Knights of Columbus led the way for the hundreds of parishioners who came to participate in the ceremony.

Buckingham Township Supervisor Maggie Rash was one of the invited dignitaries.

“I think it’s wonderful,” she said prior to the dedication service. “It’s been a long struggle for them, but I think that this is where God wants them to be.”